(Atlanta, Ga. – December 10, 2008) The Port Salerno Industrial Park (PSIP) was awarded the EPA Region 4 Excellence in Site Reuse award today in Port Salerno, Fla. for developing the Solitron Microwave Superfund site in a responsible manner that also compliments EPA’s environmental cleanup of the site.

Since purchasing the property in 2003, PSIP worked cooperatively with EPA to coordinate development with EPA’s implementation of the selected cleanup plan, resulting in enhanced cleanup and long term protectiveness of the site. PSIP demolished the former dilapidated manufacturing facility and its foundation, enabling EPA to excavate additional contaminated soil beneath the building. As a result, EPA did not have to place restrictions on future land use to ensure the remedy remains protective. PSIP also designed the site layout to minimize the impact to the existing water monitoring well network and allow EPA easy access to the monitoring wells for future sampling.

EPA supports the redevelopment of contaminated properties and views the revitalization of communities affected by contaminated properties as a key component of its mission to protect human health and the environment. Region 4 created the Excellence in Site Reuse award to recognize those who have gone above and beyond in redeveloping a Superfund site.

The Solitron Microwave Superfund site occupies about 20 acres along Cove Road in Port Salerno, Fla. As a result of manufacturing which occurred on the property from 1963 until 1987, the soil and groundwater were contaminated with perchloroethene (PCE), trichlorothene (TCE) and related breakdown products. EPA selected a cleanup plan in November of 2000 and completed construction of the cleanup plan in August 2004. The site groundwater is currently being successfully addressed through monitored natural attenuation, which allows for natural geological processes to cleanse the water of contaminants.